Eastward Ho! Country ClubMA, USA

Located in the middle of a glacial moraine, the heaving property at Eastward Ho! is unlike any other in world golf and Herbert Fowler made the most of it with a brilliant figure '8' routing.

In the United States, Herbert Fowler‘s name is often absent in the discussion of the all-time great architects. Such is not the case when a similar discussion is held in the United Kingdom. Although an excellent athlete – similar to H.C. Leeds – Herbert Fowler wasnâ€™t drawn to golf until mid-life. He quickly excelled and became enthralled with the sport, joining both the R&A and the Honorable Club of Edinburgh Golfers. This was pre-1900 and until that point, the finest courses in the British Isles were confined to the links land around its coastline.

Woking and Sunningdale Old started to change that and by 1902, a group that included a relative of Herbert Fowler‘s was ready to pursue a course some 30 miles southeast of London. Herbert Fowler, a forceful figure with strong ideas on many subjects, wanted to try his hand at course design and was given this opportunity.

For almost two years, he stalked on horseback the vast property some 700 feet above sea level on the North Downs. Finally, the first course at Walton Heath Golf Club opened in May, 1904, and was immediately recognized as a great design. Whereas the construction of Woking and Sunningdale predated the acceptance of the Haskell ball, Walton Heath was specifically built with it in mind. In fact, the course was so good that James Braid signed on to be Walton Heath’s first professional four months before the course opened. And Braid remained there until his death 46 years later. To this day, the exposed Old Course at Walton Heath is the benchmark upon which all heath courses are judged.

While Walton Heath is recognized as his masterpiece, Herbert Fowler produced other exceptional courses. His re-design of Westward Ho! had critics proclaiming it the equal of any links. In fact, when Westward Ho! re-opened in 1908, one could argue that Herbert Fowler was the man most responsible for the finest inland and finest links course in the world!

Golf course architecture was halted by World War I but by 1920, Herbert Fowler was at it again on both sides of the Atlantic. In England, he was focused on the completion of the East Course at Saunton, near his beloved Westward Ho!. Set through inspiring sand dunes, the course has many admirers. In fact, when asked to consider if an ideal course already existed in the British Isles, Wethered and Simpson wrote in 1929 that ‘we would definitely give our vote for Saunton in North Devon.’

In the United States, Herbert Fowler was busy with several projects in California including work for the Los Angeles Country Club. His sole east coast project was on Cape Cod near the town of Chatham. Ironically, according to Tom MacWood, the founding members of the club consulted with Willie Park Jr. of Sunningdale Old fame several years before regarding the suitability of the terrain for a golf course. Park gave it an enthusiastic response claiming it could be ‘equal to, if not better than, any course this side or the other’ of the Atlantic. However, in 1921 when it came time to build the course, the club board selected Herbert Fowler as opposed to Park.

As was his want, Herbert Fowler requested a horse to cover the property and apparently, the horse was borrowed from the Myopia Hunt Club. Unlike Walton Heath which has an out and back routing, the two nines at Chatham loop out and back from each side of the clubhouse, which is located in the middle of a glacial moraine. Many have praised Pete Dye for his use of a figure ‘8’ routing at The Ocean Course at Kiawah and again at Whistling Straits but it is worth noting that Herbert Fowler did so seventy years (!) prior. Perhaps Scotland’s North Berwick routing influenced Herbert Fowler?

As for Herbert Fowler‘s design beliefs, he summarized them best when he remarked, ‘God builds golf links and the less man meddles the better for all concerned.’ This minimalist approach is evident in all his designs – the teeing areas are simple affairs, there are no superfluous bunkers, the greens are frequently extensions of the fairways, and there is never any ‘framing’ of the greens.

Eastward Ho! is presented in an uncluttered manner, providing maximum opportunity for the player to soak in his surrounds. Pictured above are the clean lines of the sixteenth tee ground.

While cross bunkers, heather and gorse form the challenge at the comparatively flat Walton Heath, Herbert Fowler used the rolling topography at Eastward Ho! to keep the golfer off guard. Similar to Westward Ho!, the golfer continually faces the timeless dilemma of links golf: controlling the trajectory of his shot from an awkward stance. Nonetheless, despite its abundance of natural charms, the club started to realize around 2001 that perhaps the presentation of the course wasn’t taking full advantage of Herbert Fowler‘s design. After a careful selection process, the club elected to go with Keith Foster and his restoration plan was adopted in 2003. A startling transformation took place over the next several years, with width returned to the course, trees removed to open up long views with which few courses can compete and bunkers restored.

Important in this whole process was Frank Hancock’s coming on board as green keeper. Previously, he was the first assistant at Shinnecock Hills and came here immediately after the 2004 United States Open. He was also the second assistant at Pebble Beach before heading to Long Island, so in him, the club felt like they were hiring a man with both experience and a vision as to how a course should play when located beside a large body of water. In the near term, Hancock did a fantastic job in firming up the turf in general and especially the turf that feeds onto many of the greens (e.g. greens like the third, fourth, eighth, ninth, tenth, fourteenth and seventeenth). Asked how he achieved these results, he replies `The approaches were firmed up by attacking the thatch with intense aeration (sixty times in five years), tons of sand topdressing after every aeration, and water management. Our greens and approaches are watered almost exclusively with a hose by qualified personnel, no unnecessary water is applied to greens or approaches at anytime during the year.’

In addition, from 2004 until 2007, over 17,775 square feet of putting surface was recaptured as the greens were pulled back out to the edges of Herbert Fowler‘s fill pads. Thus, many of the perimeter hole locations – which often times are the most interesting ones – were reclaimed. As it stands now, Eastward Ho! enjoys outstanding short game interest. Given today’s green speeds, the pitch of many of these Herbert Fowler greens makes it even more imperative than in Herbert Fowler‘s day to have precise distance control on one’s approach shots. Get out of position (e.g. above the sixth or to the right of fourteenth hole locations) and even the best find this 6,400 yard course a thorough test of their skills.

Holes to Note

First hole, 390 yards; Many of the members of Eastward Ho! live in the greater Boston area and come down to the Cape for weekends. Given how star studded the golf is around Boston, the course and the environment need to be such as to compel people to make the two hour drive. If ever that was the case – of a course being so distinctive and featuring so many one-of-a-kind holes – that the drive was immaterial, it’s Eastward Ho! From the first hole on, there are at least a dozen holes that will remind the golfer of nothing he has ever played or seen before. For his part, Herbert Fowler appreciated the unique opportunity that he was given here. In 1924, he wrote an article for Golf Illustrated entitled ‘Eastward Ho The Newest Links on Cape Cod‘. In it, he noted, ‘There is probably no place in the world where so many opportunities offer themselves for the making of the best type of golf courses as on Cape Cod. The natural soil, the contours of the ground, the climate, everything combines to make it a golfer’s paradise. In fact, one may truly say that the Cape closely resembles the land on which many of the historic links of Great Britain have been made.’

As seen from the tee, the dogleg left first hole is a thorough original, playing uphill past two crater bunkers to an elevated green. Even from the tee, the wicked back to front pitch of the green is evident.

Second hole, 350 yards; Given its topography, one of the challenges that Herbert Fowler faced in routing the course was how to lay the holes over the tumbling landforms. Get it wrong and it would forever feel like the course/holes were fighting nature. Also, Herbert Fowler was mightily concerned about giving each hole golfing quality. Too many uphill approach shots, for instance, and the golfer could quickly tire. As it turned out, Herbert Fowler used many of the tee shots on the front nine to cross over the landforms that were otherwise too abrupt for good golf. The calmer land he saved for the approach shots.

Eastward Ho! enjoys a sense of adventure, in part because of the thrilling nature of some of its tee shots like the one found at the second.

After the dramatic tee ball, the approach shot is over more level ground. Ever since his arrival in 2004, Hancock has done a fantastic job of presenting the bunkers in a manner consistent with the rugged, untamed nature of the property. This bunker sixty yards short of the second green is a case in point.

Third hole, 325 yards; One of the game’s great unsung short par fours, this hole has been made even more tempting by today’s technology than it was in the day of hickory golf when the course opened. Under favorable playing conditions, power hitters are dearly tempted to let fly from the tee in hopes of getting their tee ball to chase on or near the green. However, counterbalancing the allure to do so is a long bunker ten yards short of the green. The resting place for many a tee ball from accomplished players, this bunker leaves a fidgety recovery to the green and the hopes of birdie quickly start to fade.

Given the rolling topography created from the sand, rock and debris left behind from a receding glacier, Fowler didn't need to create a lot of man-made contrivances to challenge the golfer, as indicated with this view from the third tee. The white flag is visible through the slot on the left and has suckered golfers into taking too aggressive a line off the tee for decades.

Care needs to be taken with the pitch to the third. Ala the first at Pine Valley, the green is a peninsula with sharp falls off left, right and over. Fowler's short bunker seen above cleverly camouflages some of terrors of this green complex.

Fourth hole, 180 yards; When Herbert Fowler laid out his first course at Walton Heath, he first sought ideal locations to place his one shot holes and then radiated other holes from them. Thus, it comes as no surprise that Eastward Ho! enjoys an exceptional set of one shotters, arguably one of the top dozen sets in the world. Herbert Fowler wrote about the fourth green that ‘the location is quite spectacular as the cliff is close to it on practically three sides and on the other there is trouble for the inaccurate player.’

A thriller, the fourth plays along the shoreline with steep drop-offs to the right and over.

Typical of many Fowler greens, the fourth features a tremendous amount of back to front pitch. At today's green speeds, they ensure that Eastward Ho!'s challenge does not diminish and only a fool would chase after this back right hole location from the tee!

Fifth hole, 525 yards;Herbert Fowler thought this three shotter would prompt much discussion as ‘It is one where the player will often be required to play with his head as much as with his club, and very often it will be wise to play a short second shot so as to reach the right spot as to play the third. This is the type of hole which is rare in America but which ought to become more common.’ As with his description of the fourteenth, Herbert Fowler makes it clear that one of the defenses of the course is having the unthinking golfer play from an awkward stance. The top of a hillock some one hundred yards from the green is the ideal level spot from which to play one’s pitch.

The high point of the fifth hole is 425 yards from the tee and Fowler thought it best to lay up with one's second to this area as it provides the most level stances and the best view of his pushed-up green.

Sixth hole, 420 yards; As the photographs below demonstrate, this is one of golf’s most singular holes and Herbert Fowler deemed it ‘one of the star holes on the course.’ In fact, one can only marvel at how Herbert Fowler even found it. Certainly, in the early days of golf course architecture when the architect spent just a day or two staking out a course on site, this hole would not have been discovered. Such are the virtues of Herbert Fowler, his horse, and taking the time to do it right!

The drive at the sixth clears the brow of the hill in the foreground before tumbling down into a valley from which...

...this demanding uphill approach shot. Several of the longest approach shots at Eastward Ho! are to uphill targets, meaning the course plays longer than its length would indicate.

Given the terraced nature of the sixth green, putting off it is a distinct possibility.

Seventh hole, 180 yards; Apart from the challenge of hitting a shot up a sharp incline without letting it balloon into the wind, the key to the seventh is keeping the ball below the day’s hole location. Similar with the next green which is also elevated, this one slopes sharply from back to front. The golfer who finds himself with a downwind, downhill putt to a front hole location on either the seventh or eighth greens may well likely be chipping for his next shot.

The abrupt climb uphill with one's tee ball is captured in this view from the tee. It also means that even though the fourth and seventh are similar in yardage, the seventh generally requires at least one more club. The short bunker in the foreground was one of the bunkers recaptured thanks to Foster's efforts.

Eighth hole, 350 yards; As much as any hole on the course, the eighth was dramatically improved by virtue of closely following Foster’s architectural plans. Three cross bunkers were restored in the face of a ridge some 110 yards from the green. Good golfers are now faced with a decision as what to do from the tee: lay up short of them or perhaps thread a driver past them for the sake of a short pitch in with the best view of the green.

Much to the club's credit, three penal cross bunkers were restored in the driving area and provide strategic interest to the tee ball.

In many ways, the eighth captures the essence of Eastward Ho!; not overly long but full of character.

Compare where the edge of the putting surface comes in this 2009 photograph to ...

...where it did in 2003. The golfer above would be completely on the green now.